Emmy Award nominees have ties to Annapolis

Joe Incaprera

Courtesy Photo, HANDOUT

Annapolis resident Joe Incaprera works on the set of Treme, an HBO drama, in the 9th Ward of New Orleans. Incaprera, a TV producer, has been nominated for two Emmy awards, one for "˜Treme" and another for "American Horror Story: Coven."

Annapolis resident Joe Incaprera works on the set of Treme, an HBO drama, in the 9th Ward of New Orleans. Incaprera, a TV producer, has been nominated for two Emmy awards, one for "˜Treme" and another for "American Horror Story: Coven." (Courtesy Photo, HANDOUT)

Most Annapolitans aren't thinking about what they're going to wear when they watch the Emmy Awards next week.

Few people have a dress code for sitting in front of their own TV set.

But for downtown residents Joe and Catharine Incaprera, more is riding on their choices. The two will attend the Los Angeles awards ceremony, which airs at 8 p.m. Monday on NBC, where they'll find out whether Joe wins an Emmy for outstanding miniseries.

For Joe it'll be a Calvin Klein tux and Hugo Boss shoes. For Catharine, it's a black Diane von Furstenberg gown with a jeweled neckline.

Of course, she'll be toting a bag from Annapolis' Hobo International store, too.

"You know, my wife, I think she bought eight dresses online before she settled on one," said Joe, a television producer.

Catharine, a costume supervisor, didn't want to make a fashion faux pas.

"It was very stressful because I am in wardrobe," Catharine laughed. "I didn't want to look prommy or weddingy or mother of the bride."

Their daughter Chloe, 10, won't walk the red carpet with them but will be able to attend some of the parties.

Joe's odds are greater than most of the nominees in the category: He is up for two different shows. Both "Treme," HBO's drama set in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, and "American Horror Story: Coven," FX's drama about witches, are in the running for the award.

Though Joe has been in the industry for more than 15 years, these are his first nominations. While he half-expected it for "American Horror Story" because the show has enjoyed a track record of honors in the past, the acknowledgment for "Treme" came more as a surprise.

"'Treme' is a passion project for all of us," he said. "To have that recognized after a four-year run was really special."

On Saturday, another man with Annapolis roots received accolades from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences during the Creative Arts Emmy Awards, known as the "technical awards."

Jerry Ricciotti, a videographer who grew up in Bay Ridge and attended Severn School, was nominated for his work on the HBO documentary show "Vice." The category was cinematography in nonfiction programming.

While Ricciotti didn't win the award for his category, he was part of the "Vice" team that won an Emmy for outstanding informational series, tying with Anthony Bourdain's CNN show "Parts Unknown."

Ricciotti filmed a piece on climate change in Greenland and went with Dennis Rodman to document Rodman's trip to North Korea last year.

He calls his trade the best job he could "ever picture" — spoken like a true cameraman.

"I went to this one corner of the world where no one gets to go," Ricciotti said.

He's grateful for the darkroom and the photography teacher he had at Severn School, which opened his eyes to the profession.

"If I didn't have that — something to encourage me — I might not have gotten here," Ricciotti said.

Whether or not Joe Incaprera gets a little statue next week to bring back to the East Coast, he's glad to be on the shortlist.

"It's a nice little bit of icing on the cake after the pride that you already have."